The Effect of Benson's Relaxation Technique on Fatigue and Quality of Life of Patients Diagnosed With Heart Failure

Patients with heart failure (HF) reported poor quality of life (QOL) due to different reasons among which fatigue is the most important. Improving QOL is a crucial objective for patients with HF and their primary health care providers. Managing fatigue with medication is not enough. Benson's relaxation technique (BRT) is a complementary therapy used to manage fatigue among different populations with limited studies checking its effect among patients diagnosed with HF. The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to check the effect of BRT on fatigue and QOL among 140 (68 intervention and 72 control) patients diagnosed with HF. Intervention group performed BRT for 20 minutes twice a day for 2 months. Control group received regular care from their health care providers. At baseline, there were no differences between intervention and control groups regarding fatigue, physical component summary, and mental component summary. At follow-up, intervention group had higher scores in physical and mental component summaries than control group (45.48 +/- 10.52 vs 37.97 +/- 14.78) and (46.22 +/- 8.39 vs 41.01 +/- 10.36), respectively. Also, intervention group had lower levels of fatigue than control group (2.54 +/- 0.87 vs 6.33 +/- 0.61). In conclusion, the use of BRT as a complementary therapy for patients with HF might decrease fatigue level and improve QOL.